The Kanawha County, West Virginia Inmate Roster is a public resource that allows anyone to verify who is currently in custody at the regional pre-trial detention facility. KanawhaCourt.us helps find publicly available information about current and recently released inmates. Additionally, data can be obtained through the official website of the Kanawha County Sheriff's Office, the State Department of Corrections portal, by visiting the facility in person, or by calling. The roster is maintained by the West Virginia Regional Jail Authority and is regularly updated. It is hosted on the state inmate search portal and serves as a transparency tool that allows the public to track detention facts and charges.
Search Current Inmates in Kanawha Jail
Individuals detained in Kanawha County are typically held at the South Central Regional Jail and Correctional Facility located in Charleston. Below is a step-by-step guide to searching for inmates.
Online Search
- Go to the WV Regional Jail Authority inmate search page.
- Enter at least the first three letters of the person's last name.
- If necessary, refine the results by adding a first name.
- Click the search button — the system will display a list of individuals matching the criteria.
You can also view the daily list of active inmates by county by selecting Kanawha County from the list. This page is updated regularly, but information can change quickly.
For searching court records related to criminal cases, use the magistrate court record search or the state's court record access portal. Public information about court cases is also available on KanawhaCourt.us.
By Phone
Call the facility or the sheriff's office directly:
South Central Regional Jail and Correctional Facility
Kanawha County Sheriff's Office
The dispatcher can confirm if a specific person is in custody if you provide the full legal name or booking number.
In-Person Visit
Visit the reception of the South Central Regional Jail during business hours. You will need the inmate's full name. Note: Records of juvenile offenders are not included in the public roster and are not provided upon request.
Find Kanawha Jail Booking Records Online
A booking record is created at the moment a detained person undergoes the intake process at the facility. It is the first official document that records the fact of incarceration.
During intake, the following data is generated:
- Booking number — a unique identifier
- Date and time of intake
- List of charges
- Name of the arresting agency (sheriff's office, city police, state police, etc.)
- Personal data: full name, date of birth, gender, race
Most of this information is displayed on the regional jail inmate search portal. If more detailed information is needed — such as a copy of the arrest report or the full booking record — submit a public records request. According to §29B-1-3 of the West Virginia Code, every person has the right to inspect or copy public records of state agencies, except as otherwise expressly provided by law.
The request can be directed to the South Central Regional Jail or the State Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. For arrest warrants issued within the county, check the warrant search page on the sheriff's office website.
Search the Kanawha Jail Roster by Last Name or Booking Number
The state portal supports two main search methods.
By Last Name
Enter at least the first three letters of the last name. The system will display all inmates whose last name begins with those letters. Adding a first name significantly narrows the results — this is useful for common last names like Smith or Johnson.
Practical tips:
- Check spelling: one mistake and the record will not appear.
- Try spelling variations if the last name has an unusual transliteration.
- If there are too many results, use the page search function (Ctrl+F) to filter.
By Booking Number
If you know the booking number, enter it in the appropriate field. This is the most accurate method — it returns a single record without any ambiguity.
What to Do If the Search Yields No Results
- Ensure the name is entered correctly — without extra spaces or special characters.
- The person may have already been released on bail or transferred to another facility. Try the state correctional facility inmate search.
- Call the facility at (304) 558-6038 to verify the detention status.
- Recently booked individuals may not yet appear in the system — there is a delay between the actual intake and the appearance on the portal.
Jail Roster Updates and Search Limitations in Kanawha
The WV Regional Jail Authority portal is updated regularly throughout the day, but not in real-time. The search page itself notes: "This information can change quickly." There can be a delay from a few hours to the end of the business day between the physical booking of an inmate and the appearance of the record in the online database.
Key limitations to be aware of:
- Delay after booking. A person booked in the evening or on weekends may not appear in the system until the next business day.
- Disappearance of records after release. The roster only displays those currently in custody. After release, transfer, or supervision, the record is typically removed from the active list.
- Not an archive. The portal does not store a history of all previous bookings. To obtain old records, a written request must be submitted to the facility or the Department of Corrections.
- Warrants separately. Arrest warrant lists on the sheriff's office website are not updated on weekends and holidays.
If you are looking for information about a court case, not just the fact of incarceration, refer to the Kanawha County court information page on the West Virginia court system portal. There you will find contacts for the circuit court and magistrate court, through which you can request copies of records or check the status of a case.